The organisers of the International Football History Conference AKA FootyCon are pleased to announce that their 2026 annual conference will take place at Craven Cottage, Fulham Pier, Fulham Football Club, London, England on Friday the 12th & Saturday the 13th of June 2026. The organisers also welcome delegates to join them for a welcome social event on the evening of Thursday the 11th of June 2026.
The conference organisers welcome any topic relating to the history of football of all codes. This includes, but is not limited to: Association Football, Rugby Union & Rugby League, Gaelic Football and Aussie Rules.
- Main conference proceedings will take place between 8.30 am and 6 pm on Friday the 12th and Saturday the 13th of June 2026.
- As with previous years, Abstracts are welcome on any football-related topic (football of ALL codes)
- Abstracts are welcome by researchers from any discipline.
- Presentations must not have appeared at another conference. As our conference does not have parallel sessions, we insist that presentations must not repeat something presented elsewhere.
Abstracts for the following presentation styles are welcomed, but please also get in touch if there’s a style you have used elsewhere that you feel would work well instead of those listed below. :
Interview (20 minutes)
New for 2026. We are aware that some delegates may find the idea of standing up to do a presentation daunting. Similarly, a traditional presentation style may not always be the best way to get your material out there, while some find it difficult to engage with audiences. So, for this year we would like to offer delegates the opportunity to be interviewed about their research by either one of the organising committee or by another delegate. The intention is to have the expert/author/presenter and interviewer seated for a general discussion covering the key points (agreed in advance) of the expert’s research.
This would be a more relaxed style and, hopefully, will appeal to those who would like to present but are put off in some way by traditional formats.
The opportunity for multiple delegates with related topics to be interviewed together exists (like a panel presentation).
Short Form (10 minutes)
Suggested 20 slides (plus a title slide) with a maximum of 20 seconds per slide. Ideal for a summary of research; to present early findings; Image-related research etc. We allow ten minutes for these.
Twenty Minutes
Those choosing a 20-minute slot will be able to split that time between presentation and questions as they feel appropriate (for example 15 minutes of presentation and 5 minutes of questions or 20 minutes presentation and no audience questions).
Panel
One hour: three presenters and a moderator on a related theme with specific time for individual presentations within the session agreed by the moderator including allowance for questions at the end to the group.
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If you wish to present at the conference, please send a 100-to-150-word proposal to footycon@outlook.com by the 5th of January 2026. The selection of presentations will take place by the organising committee, and we will ensure confirmation as soon as possible after that date, particularly for those travelling some distance.
The International Football History Conference is a self-funding event. All delegates, whether presenting or not, will need to book their place before attending. The booking system will be opening later in October.
Financially, these remain difficult times for delegates and for the conference (a self-funding, non-profit making endeavour). Once again, an early bird price for delegates will be available for booking before the end of January. This will keep the cost of attendance for full-time delegates at the 2023, 2024 and 2025 conference rates. The rate from 1 February will be the same as last year’s final rate.
Rates
- Full Delegate (2 days): £139 (rising to £149 from 1 February)
- Students/unwaged/retired delegates (2 Days): £129 (rising to £139 from 1 February)
- Special Day Rate: £76 (employed) & £67.50 (unwaged/Students/retired; rising to £70 on 1 February)
For any further questions, please contact the conference organisers at the contact email given or via the conference’s social media accounts on X at @footycon or Bluesky at @footycon.bsky.social.
